Heart-shaped Bar of Soap
by wolveswolvesandmorewolves
Summary: AU. WARNING: EXTREME CUTENESS. Weird, organic hipster! Jean meets Marco at a soap shop and it's love at first sight. Unfortunately Jean's parents don't exactly agree. YmirX Krista, ReinerXBertolt, SpringleS also included. Slight LeviXPetra (but it's really sad). Some angst and almost everyone has different personalities.
1. Chapter One

Today I got a job at a soap shop.

Now this isn't like any other shop I've seen. It's not like Bath and Body Works, or anything that sells soap on the side. This is like walking into a soap haven, bottles and bottles of shampoo, conditioner, body wash and all these other things in between, each having a new and different scent than another.

I guess I can say the place is kind of like Bath and Body Works. White tiled floors, bright white lights illuminating everything, granite countertops, and the whole shebang. And the store smells like a thousand different flowers were combined into one huge sweet-smelling flower that had the ability to make anyone in the store smell it. I don't know why, but I really like the place.

"Alright Marco," Erwin, my new boss, said as he walked me through the store. "Today is your lucky day. One of our cashiers got sick, and we need you to cover for him. Do you think you can handle that?"

I thought for a moment. Before working here, I had a summer job in a restaurant as a waiter, worked in Wal-Mart as a cashier for about six months, and helped my elderly grandfather work on his ranch. I guess I can say I'm a people person.

"No problem sir," I say happily.

"Alright then. Make sure to come see me when your shift is done, and let me know what other days you can work this week. If you need help, just go speak to Eren," he pointed at a dark-haired boy who was shelving a bottle of conditioner, "Or you can speak to Connie and Sasha." Erwin gestured to a shaven boy who was leaning against a display, while a brown-haired girl talked to him around the lollipop in her mouth. Connie and Sasha looked a bit like a couple. Sasha's brown locks were tied up into a ponytail, her face framed by escaped hairs on either side of her face. Her eyes were bright and lively, a dancing brown that made me feel a bit more at ease. Connie was slightly shorter than Sasha, his eyes a bluish-grey and a slight smile on his lips. His hair was so short it looked grey, and I could tell that out of the two he was the serious one.

"If all else fails, Levi is in the back, but he's not exactly the friendly type." Erwin concluded, casually swiping a hand through his slicked back blond hair.

Despite the warning, I still smiled anyway. As long as Levi and I kept at distance, I think I'd be okay.

"Oh, I almost forgot." Erwin reached underneath the counter and grabbed an apron, turning it so he could show me the front. The store's name,The Soap Shop, was written across the front in white letters, bright against the dark green fabric. "We'll get your nametag in next week."

After slipping on the apron, I leaned against the countertop and pulled out my phone. Ten minutes before the doors would open and I would have to help customers. I guess now is the perfect time to introduce myself.

The dark-haired boy –Eren- was the closest, so I walked up to him. "So, can you, like, tell me what to do?" I asked in order to make conversation.

"Oh, you're the new kid, right?" He asked. I nodded. "Welcome aboard," he said, and shook my hand. "Listen, uh, all you really need to do is ring up people's stuff and man the cash register. The rest of us can handle everything else. I normally put stuff back where they belong, and then Sasha and Connie like to help people out and display products. So it's really a simple job, although Levi likes to criticize the newbies on their first few shifts."

"Cool, thanks man."

"Uh, also, if you can, like, not be a jerk? I mean you don't look like a jerk, but if you are, keep that crap outside the store, you know?"

I laughed, flashing more of the dimples on my cheeks. "Don't worry," I chuckle.

Turning, I headed back to the cash register when I stopped. "Oh, can you give me a lift?"

"Sure, if you can deal with my sister. How old are you?"

"Nineteen."

"Are your parents making you save up for a car or something?"

I nodded. Truth to be told, my parents don't exactly care about me. As soon as the year seventeen rolled around, I began looking at furnished apartments on my laptop. And the night I turned eighteen, I was already moving out by morning. Everything I would need to survive for the next few months was in my bank account: all the money I had earned from jobs hadn't been spent on stupid things like video games or a new phone. Everything I owned was second hand, but it was enough.

"Ah. I see."

"Yeah, and I live in a little complex outside the city, so the bus doesn't run out that way."

"How many miles away?"

"Like, ten. Look if you can't do it I've got a friend who works in the store next door who I can wait for after my shift, I just don't want to wait for her."

Eren hesitated, then sighed. "I'll run it by Mikasa and see what she says."

"Ok thank you." I smile. Possible friendship with Eren: achieved.

Eren glanced at the front doors. "Oh know. There he is."

Already, the mall was starting to fill with people. A couple chased after their kids, who were running and laughing towards the Toys R Us. Three teenage girls were texting and giggling, bags hanging from their arms. A seeing-eye dog was leading an elderly man, who was hobbling on a cane to keep up. And in the middle of it all was a boy sitting on a bench.

The guy must have been about the same age as me, maybe older. His hair was two shades, the top half lighter than the bottom. A grey beanie sat on his head, and I could dimly see metal studs in his ear flashing in the light. He wore a grey hoodie that matched the beanie, a pair of red jeans, and what looked like loose black combat boots on his feet. The boy was on his phone, fingers tapping the brightly-lit screen.

"Who's that?" I asked.

"Jean, the organic weirdo hipster guy." Eren's lip twisted into a frown. "For some odd reason he loves this place, and buys a new bottle of something every day. But most of the time he just talks to Armin."

"Armin?" I asked.

"Yeah, the blond-haired guy that called in sick this morning. Real nice guy, and kind of nerdy too. Can't tell you how many times I've caught him reading a book or watching a documentary on wildlife underneath the counter."

"So, does the Jean dude have a crush on him?" I asked.

"Nah, or at least I don't think so. I think Jean just needs a friend, but the least he can do is talk to Armin after hours."

"Oh, leave 'im alone." Sasha yelled out. "Besides, he's kind of cute."

"Ugh," Connie said as he made a face.

"What?"

"Please don't tell me you like him or something, because then I'll never hear the end of it." Connie whined.

Sasha cuffed him over the head. "Oh, shut up. Besides I don't think he's straight."

"Oh, he's straight alright." Eren scoffed. "Back when my sister worked here, he had a bit of a crush on her. Now? I don't know, but I'm guessing he hasn't wavered since then."

A small bubble in my chest burst, and I couldn't help but feel disappointed. But then Eren turned towards me. "Listen, alright. That guy's going to come in here looking for Armin, so don't be surprised if he doesn't like you from the start. But just try to deal and get him to like you, since chances are you'll be seeing him a lot."

"Basically just do the opposite of what Eren does." Sasha said, looking at me. "He and Jean don't exactly mix."

"Well, yeah. The guy is weird! I mean who is so into soap that they buy a bottle of soap every day?"

"Obviously not you," Sasha retorted, and Connie smirked.

"Yeah, 'cause I'm normal." Eren muttered.

A loud slam ended the conversation, reverberating and making all of us jump. "Hey brats," an angry voice said, "Just what the hell are you standing around here for?"

I turned, expecting some huge, macho guy with muscles the size of my face. Instead I found a man, probably around the age of thirty-five, but only 5'3 in height. His hair was black, cut close to his head along the sides but a scruffy mess on top. White skin, so pale that it looked like it was made out of snow, showing off his blue veins. Dark, dead eyes with shadows around them, making purple smudges against the pallor of his skin. A low scowl was on his lips, and he looked like he could kill with only one look.

"Mr. Levi, uh, we were just, um, showing the newbie the ropes. Yeah, that's all we were doing," Eren stammered out.

"Well, we just got a new shipment of Starbucks coffee for the drink machine. Apparently white girls love that crap. Get your asses back here and help." He snapped, and pointed at Eren. "You, come with me. You two, Sasha. Connie, stay here to watch the store. New freak…you look too useless to do anything."

I frowned slightly at the insult. I don't exactly like jerks, and they don't exactly like my happy personality. Ever since I was in kindergarten, bullies would try to break my spirit, to make me shout or get angry. I remember a couple times I would come home and tell my mother about my terrible day, but she would tell me to keep my chin up. It was the best advice apparently, since even now bullies don't even bother with me.

Eren shot me a look, signaling that I should just not say anything. Instead I walked behind the counter, pulled out a little stool to sit on, and then slipped my phone out my pocket. I checked the time. Two minutes until the store would be officially open.

Glancing up, I looked past the glass doors and into the mall outside. Jean was still there, and I could now see the contrast in his hair colors. He looked to be frowning at the little smartphone in his hand, rising from his slouch to sit upright. Was he about to leave?

I didn't want him to leave. Even if he didn't even talk to me, I wanted to know more about him. Who was he? What did he do for a living? Does he have a crush on Armin? Or possibly Eren's sister? Oh I wish he would come up to me!

"Hurry up," Connie said, jolting me from my thoughts. "We only have a minute left before we open."

Without another word, Levi, Eren, and Sasha went into the back, closing the door behind them. I watched their retreating backs, wondering if Levi was born like that or was experiencing pain.

"His wife," Connie spoke all of a sudden. "His wife, Petra Ral, died recently of emphysema, and ever since he's been really torn up about it."

"Emphysema?" I asked. "That sounds familiar."

Connie looked up. "It is. Emphysema is a type of disease, called a chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. It's a mouthful, but basically COPD is a disease that infects the lungs. Emphysema destroys the lungs overtime, and Petra's mom was a huge smoker and must've passed it along to her daughter. Besides, a couple years before Petra's death they were supposed to have a daughter, but it led to miscarriage."

"A daughter?"

"Yeah. Back then Levi was actually kind of happy, but then their precious little Marina died when she had only three months until her due date. He's been grumpy ever since, but just when he was starting to heal, Petra was killed too. Now he's even worse."

I stared at the doors I had just seen Levi walk through. No wonder he was so tempered. I would be pretty upset if I lost the people I loved, just like him.

Suddenly a loud beeping pulled me away from my thoughts. Connie looked down at his watch and pressed a button before pulling out a pair of keys from his pocket. Then he strode over to the doors, and I knew what he was going to do. Right as he slipped the key into the lock, he turned to me. "You ready?" He asked.

I nodded. I'm as ready as I'd ever be.

With a single wrist movement, the door was unlocked, and he pulled his key out before pushing the doors open.

**Jean**

I had gotten to the store too early. Not exactly a surprise, since I was one of those types of people who would wait for a store to open.

Glancing upwards, I looked in through the glass. Connie, Sasha, and Eren were already there, straightening things up and messing around. As soon as I saw Eren's face, I instinctively rubbed my nose, remembering the punch he had given me when he found out I liked his sister a few years ago. I still hate him, but the feeling is mutual, so I don't really feel bad.

Then I realized something. Where's Armin? My blond haired friend was a no-show, and I distinctly remembered him saying something about always getting to the shop early. So what was keeping him?

My phone buzzed, and I looked down at my game of Bejeweled. A text from Armin. I tap it, and my messages pull up on the screen.

Sorry, not feeling too good. Not coming in today.-A

My brow furrowed as I typed in a response.

Aww I'm already here. Guess I'll just skip today.-J

Feeling disappointed, I rose from my seat on the bench, ready to walk off. But right as I was about to slip my phone back into my pocket, I got another text.

Don't go! There's a new guy that's taking over my shift today. Can you talk to him to see if he's a jerk or not?-A

I sighed, remembering all those times when Armin brought my failing D in math class up to a B+. I did owe the guy.

Fine. I owe you anyway. I just hope this is worth it.-J

Then I looked through the glass, trying to find the new guy. Aha! Right then, I caught Erwin walking a tall, tan college-looking kid behind the counter.

Suddenly my brain processes stopped as I stared at him. I've definitely never seen _him _before.

Dark tan skin, the color and shade of someone that spends hours out in the sun. Freckles, dotting every inch of his flesh, and dark, messy hair. His teeth were pearly white, eyes a deep brown, and his body was so lean and toned. I could see muscles flexing in his arms as he grasped the apron in his hands. Slipping it over his head and adorable hair before tying it in the back.

My cheeks grew pink as I stared with curiosity and…something else. Something more intimate. Hope possibly? Connection?

Then my phone buzzed again, and I reluctantly tore my eyes away and looked at the screen.

You there?-A

My fingers flew across the keyboard, quick to respond.

You didn't tell me he was hot!-J

The next few messages looked something like this:

He is? Description plz!-A

Ok uh…tall, really cute, and really tan.-J

Didn't you tell me last week that your type was tall, dark, and handsome?-A

Well…in my defense, he's not exactly dark. He's really tan and his hair and eyes are kind of dark, but he looks way too happy to be dark.-J

Send me a pic.-A

I moved from my messages to camera mode, making sure to turn the flash up before holding up the camera. Then I smiled widely, making it seem as if I was taking a selfie instead of taking a picture of him. Then I quickly sent the picture, and a few seconds later got a text response.

Holy crap he's hot!-A

I couldn't help but smile and nod at his text.

Ikr. What's his name again?-J

Idk. I just know he's going to be taking my shift for the day.-A

He's gorgeous. Think he would like going to the fair with me on Fri?-J

ASK HIM OUT!-A

Omg no maybe just as friends but as a date…he probably doesn't like me anyway.-J

Well you don't know until you try.-A

…-J

Oh come on. At least ask if he wants to go to the fair. And if he tells you he doesn't swing that way, say as a friend. It's full-proof.-A

I sighed.

Fine, but you owe me.-J

How do I owe you?-A

When has anyone ever hit on someone and it ends up well?-J

Okay fine. I'll give you twenty bucks. But you have to promise using it on your possible fair date if you go. Deal?-A

Sure. Whatever floats your boat.-J

I slipped my phone back into my pocket, a thousand questions running through my head. How on earth would I even talk to him? How can I even say hi, or even ask him out? This was like asking out someone from a different species.

And how can I even get the nerve to ask him? I can barely speak in front of my crush, much less a guy as cute and amazing as he is! So how on earth would I be able to pull this off?

"Hey. We know you want to come in, so let's just stop staring off into space, okay?" A familiar voice said, and I looked up to see Connie Springle. "Seriously dude. Get it together."

"Oh God, my bad." I said, and rose from the bench, and then started laughing. "I feel stupid."

"Don't worry kid. I don't think anyone noticed that you were staring so intently at that potted plant over there and looking like you wanted to marry it." Connie chuckled, and I felt my cheeks grow warm at my embarrassment.

As soon as I walked in, I began noticing the smallest things. The store smelled more like oranges than the normal Windex scent. They had replaced the strawberry shampoo and conditioner with lemon scented ones. There was a small bowl of heart-shaped bars of soap on a display. A small scuff on the floor, one that Sasha must've missed yesterday when she mopped the floor.

"Morning Jean!" A kind voice said, and I looked up to see Sasha leaning against a post, Starbucks in one hand, nibbling absentmindedly on the straw.

"Morning Sasha. That's, like, what, your third cup?" I asked in a teasing tone.

"Shut up," she said but smiled.

"Move your feet," Connie mumbled as he swept the tiled floor, nudging for Sasha to move.

"Hey Connie," I greeted him.

"Oh, Jean, I forgot to tell you this yesterday. We got a new shipment of that mint body wash that you like: it's in the back."

"That's fantastic." I said earnestly.

"Yeah. Sasha would just _love_ to get it for you." Connie said, shooting Sasha a small grin. She rolled her eyes, but gestured for me to wait.

As soon as Sasha was gone, I looked up at the cashier. He was popping a mint into his mouth, and as soon as he looked back up, I turned back towards Connie. "So, who's the new guy?" I asked.

"Oh, that's Marco Botd. What? You think he's cute or something?"

I immediately turned red. "Oh, I uh, erm…" I couldn't finish my sentence, and instead buried my head into my hands. Finally I looked up and stared at him through my fingers. "You think he would say yes if I asked him out?"

Connie scoffed. "If he isn't your type, then I'm blind."

Unlike most people, Connie understood and accepted me completely. And he also went above and beyond, always supporting me as long as it wasn't mass murder. So that's why the next words that came out of his mouth were, "You know what would be cute? If you got one of those little heart soap things and used it to ask him out. Girls love that stuff, so why don't you try it?"

My blushing had calmed down, and I rose to look up at him. "You think?"

"Try it."

Then I felt disappointment curl in my stomach. "I already have a story though. I can ask him to go, and if he says no, I'll make it sound as if we were going as friends."

He shrugged. "That works too."

Sasha walked up, right to hear that line. "Huh? What's going on?" She asked as he handed me a large bottle of body wash.

"Oh, Jean's going to try to get lucky." Connie said, shooting her a raised eyebrow.

"With who?" She asked, and then looked around. Then her eyes fell on Marco, who was wiping down the counter. "Oh. I see now." A sly grin fell to her lips.

"Do you think he can do it?" Connie asked Sasha like I wasn't even here.

"I hope so. It'd be a good thing to see him happy again." Sasha replied.

My eyebrows furrowed. "What do you mean, happy again?"

"Well, you haven't been exactly happy since Eren broke your nose and Mikasa crushed your dreams."

I winced at that. Ever since I was young, I never really had crushes. So when I met Mikasa, I felt as if I was in love. And then she broke my heart, and I haven't been able to really be trustful around the subject of love ever since.

"Yeah, but I think this might just be different." I said, turning to look at Marco. Could this work?

Then Sasha nudged me. "Go get him, alright. Make the boy happy."

I felt a slight frown fall to my lips. "Now? I have to go now?

"Well duh! If you don't go now, you'll never go."

I wish I could protest, but it was the truth. So instead I sighed, tried to summon some courage, and began to walk towards the counter.

Every step felt like lead. My feet wouldn't cooperate; my tongue felt glued to the roof of my mouth; my heart raced faster by the nanosecond. I definitely don't remember experiencing this with Mikasa. I had to stop, taking several deep breaths before trying again.

"Are-are you okay sir?" Marco asked, staring at me with concern.

"I-I…" I stammered, and then awkwardly set the bar of soap and bottle of body wash on the counter.

Instead of prying, he rang up my soap, and when he got to the bar of soap he looked up at me. "Is this for your girlfriend or something?"

"Uh…well I was thinking about giving that to someone I really like." Screw it. I'm just completely bullshitting now.

"Oh really? Kind of like an, 'I like you, do you like me?' kind of thing?" Marco asked, smiling.

"Yeah," I said, turning bright red.

"Well, tell her that she's a lucky girl."

"Him." I blurted out.

"Pardon?" Marco asked, but I couldn't detect a trace of negative emotions in his eyes.

"Him. Tell him that he is a lucky guy." I said, my face turning to the shade of a tomato.

"Oh! I see." He said, still smiling.

"Please don't tell me you're…against that." I stuttered.

"No! Not at all! As a matter of fact…I'm like that too." He said, blushing.

I wanted to grin like a little kid in a candy store. "Well, I'm Jean."

"Yeah, I'm Marco." He replied, shaking my open hand.

"Well, then, Marco," I waggled my eyebrows teasingly at him. "Would you like to hang out at the fair on Friday?"

He turned red, but laughed. "I would love to. Want to call me later about details?"

We exchanged numbers, and as I practically skipped past a grinning Sasha and Connie, out the door, already dying for it to be Friday.

**What do you think so far? Cute right? It's supposed to be: this fic is mostly cuteness and humor. Little bit of angst from Eren, but not much. Warning you now, characters such as Levi and Eren will not be shipped with anyone, not even each other. I repeat: THERE IS NO EREMIKA, EREMIN, ERERI, ERURI OR WHATEVER OTHER SHIP THAT CONTAINS EREN OR LEVI IN IT. But to make up for that, I made sure to add YumiKiri, ReinerXBertoltd, and Springles. **

**Comment!**

**-Lilith**


	2. At the Top of the Ferris Wheel

**Jean**

It was Friday afternoon. I was practically bouncing on the balls of my feet as I bought tickets for us online, and as I got up to print them out, I actually did a little jump.

Okay. It wasn't all happiness and excitement. I was severely freaking out.

As I sat down on my couch, I wondered what was going to happen. I haven't exactly liked someone like this before, much less gone on a date. What do I do? Should we hold hands? Oh, how I would love to feel his warm, soft palm against mine. Or maybe I could kiss him? Despite the feeling of euphoria at the thought, I knew that he might want to take it slow. A kiss on the cheek maybe?

Then I looked down at the blue plaid shirt and grey jeans I was wearing. Was this acceptable? Was he going to think I'm overdressed? Should I just show up in shorts and a t-shirt? God I have no idea what I'm doing.

My phone vibrated. Someone was calling me.

"Hello?" I asked once I had put the phone up to my ear.

"Hey! How are you doing?" Armin asked.

"Uh, good. Yeah, I'm fine." I said.

"You don't sound fine. You're freaking out."

"Maybe a little," I admitted.

"Well, I get that your new at this, so I called in backup."

I sat up and raised my eyebrows. "What do you mean?"

"Well, I told Ymir and Krista about your little date and asked if they can tag along. Kind of like a double date. That way you're around people you can trust."

"You know Krista doesn't like me. Fangirls and hipsters equal possible bloodshed."

"Yeah, well, suck it up. It's too late to cancel anyway. And I also decided to introduce myself."

My eyebrows were about to fly off my face. "You're going to be there too?"

"Well, not for long. I kind of got a date with Annie. But I'll come by and say hey when I see you." Armin promised.

"Damn right you will," I muttered, then leaned back so I was lying on the couch.

"Jean?"

"Yeah?"

"You need help don't you?"

I laughed. "Yeah you can say that."

"Here's some advice: be yourself. Do whatever you think is best, especially if he doesn't like it. And by the word 'best', I mean the right thing."

I grinned. "Thanks."

"Take care of yourself."

"Yeah, you too." I said, and hung up.

Ymir and Krista are kind of like the weird couple on the street. Ymir is a rebel kind of girl, with hair cut just below her ears, black streaked with white, purple, and brown. Multiple piercings: two above an eyebrow, two below her bottom lip, a belly piercing, and several more through her ears. A tattoo stretches across her abdomen and down the side of her left leg, and she always wears something torn or worn out somehow. She's really outgoing and carefree.

Krista, on the other hand, is like her opposite when it comes to personality. She's really shy and quiet, but around only around Ymir does she show her true colors. Long platinum blond hair, slender and small body, and always has something to do with a book, show, or movie on her. A T.A.R.D.I.S. shirt, an anti-possession tattoo done in Sharpie on her hand, couple of dashes drawn around her thumb to symbolize bite marks: it's always something (and most of the time I don't understand it at all). But there are two things she always has. Her side bag and her necklace are her most prized possessions. Don't get me started on the bag, but from what Ymir told me, she gave Krista a ring that has been passed through her family, and it's basically like an engagement ring. It indicates their love for each other, but Krista was afraid of losing it, so she put it on a chain around her neck.

Now that I think about it, I think I can still remember how they got together. Ymir was at the arcade in the mall, waiting for a few friends, when she saw Krista playing a hard game in the corner. So she went over there, thinking that a nerd like Krista couldn't beat it (back then Krista had glassed, but she has contacts now I think). So she was really surprised when Krista won. And I guess Ymir must've felt something in her heart, because next thing she knew she was asking Krista to play against her. They spent the rest of the day together, and now, two years later, they're still together.

The only reason I don't like them is because the whole hipsters vs. fangirls thing. I mean, Ymir isn't half bad once you get past her appearance, and Krista is a lot like her. But it's kind of a Tumblr thing, so we keep our distance.

Armin and Annie…haven't been together that long. Or at least I don't think. They're not exactly an airtight kind of couple: compared to Ymir and Krista, they hardly ever see each other. But whenever they do, it's not anything bad or good: it's neutral. That's the only way I can describe their relationship. But it's clear that they have a deeper bond: they always seem to know what's on each other's minds.

I almost forgot! I have to call Marco and tell him about our now double date! As I fumbled for the phone, I hoped he wouldn't be too mad.

He picked up on the second ring. "Hello?" He asked.

"Hey, Marco," I said, swallowing my nervousness.

"Oh hey Jean. What's up?"

"Uh, listen. My friend Armin scheduled for two friends of mine to go on a double date with us at the fair. Are you okay with that?"

"Sure. Who are they? Sasha and Connie?"

"Huh? No. Besides I don't think they're a couple."

"Could've fooled me."

"I know right. Anyway, Ymir and Krista will be meeting us there. Also Armin's going to stop by while he's on his date. Is that okay?"

"Jean, it's-

"I mean I really hope it's okay because it's too late to cancel Ymir and Krista but I can talk to Armin and tell him to keep his distance if you want. If that's what you want, I can do it." I blurted out before I could stop myself, and then blushed bright red.

"Jean, I don't mind. Besides, I want to meet your friends. You know, thank Armin for being sick so I can go on a date with you."

I breathed a sigh of relief. "Okay, if you want to do that."

"Listen, I've got to go take a shower. How about I call you when you can come pick me up?"

"Yeah, alright. See you then," I said, and hung up.

I sat up and looked at the clock on the wall. One thirty-seven. I was so anxious to see him that I couldn't help but lay back down and try to make the time pass faster by staring blankly at the ceiling. When I couldn't take it anymore, I looked back up again. One thirty-eight.

Sighing, I leaned back down again. This was going to be a long day.

**(Time skip. It is now five o'clock, and Jean and Marco have just pulled into the fair parking lot.)**

"Whoa," Marco said as we passed the fair, trying to find a parking spot. He pressed his hands up against the windows, leaving prints, but I didn't mind. "There are a lot of people here!"

"There is supposed to be a concert going on while we're there, so this place is packed. I'm probably going to break my back just trying to find a parking spot," I said as we drove directly to the back of the lot, looking for an empty space.

Suddenly my phone rang. It was sitting on the dashboard, so it started shaking and vibrating, moving around. "Will you get that please? I bet its Ymir or Armin." I asked.

Marco picked up the phone, pressed the green button, and then held it up to his ear. "Hello?" He asked, and I heard a confused noise on the other line. "No, this is his date. Sorry he's driving right now, but I can pass a message along. Yeah. Okay. I'll tell him that. Bye."

"Who was it?" I asked after a short pause.

"Ymir, I think. She sounded really confused when I answered, but she told me to tell you that she's at the south entrance and that there are more parking spaces over there. She'll be waiting over by the ticket booth, I think."

Sure enough, when we passed by the south entrance, I saw a tall figure wearing a torn Nirvana shirt next to smaller figure wearing a t-shirt with a weird symbol painted on the front. "That'll be them," I said, nodding towards them. Marco turned and looked, and turned back to me.

"Are they nice?" He asked, and I wanted to reach out and hug him.

"Of course they are. I mean Ymir is pretty hardcore sometimes, but she can be fun. And Krista is okay too, as long as you don't bring up the Avengers, any British TV shows, popular animes, or Supernatural, because then she'll go haywire and won't shut up."

"Aww, I love the Avengers." Marco pouted.

I couldn't help but feel sad. "Okay fine, maybe you can talk about the Avengers." I said, feeling a little less guilty.

At my sudden silence, Marco looked at me. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. I'm just a little more into X-men than the Avengers." I admitted right before we finally pulled into a parking space.

"No way! We are watching an Avengers movie." At my grin, he continued. "Do you hear me? We will find the Avengers on Netflix and we will watch it in my living room. It will happen, understand?"

I couldn't help it: I started laughing as Marco chuckled. Then I climbed out, but before Marco could slide out the passenger seat, I rushed around the front to open the door for him. Kindness and curtesy, I guess.

"Why thank you, my good sir," Marco said in a fake British accent as he clambered out, causing me to smile. "Now, let's go. Don't want to keep the girls waiting on us."

As we walked through the parking lot, we nudged each other, playfully kicked each other in the shins, and teased one another. It was fun, lightly shoving Marco only to have him elbow me back. It was nice to be playful again.

When we got to the ticket booth though, Ymir was mad.

"It doesn't take ten damn minutes to find a damn parking space." Ymir said as she approached us, Krista trailing in her wake. "God, like, what, did you go out for ice cream on the way through the parking lot?"

I ignored her, and instead turned to Marco. "Marco, this is Ymir. Ymir, this is my date Marco."

Ymir looked him up and down, and then raised an eyebrow. "He's cute, I'll give you that."

"Krista, this is Marco. Marco, this is-

"What shows do you watch?" Krista asked before I could finish the sentence.

"You know, I don't really watch that many shows." Marco said, and I relaxed. "But recently I've started watching a show called Supernatural."

Krista grabbed his shoulders, and made a sound like mixture of a high pitched squeal and a fish gasping for air. Oh no. It's all over now.

"What season are you on?" She asked in a breathy whisper.

"Five."

"What part?"

"Crowley just showed up."

"Oh I really hate that part because of…well, you'll find out later. But I don't think he dies." She said in a normal voice, releasing her hold on Marco and taking a step back.

"Really? I mean, I know all of them are going to die so many times it's not even funny, but not Crowley?"

"Nope."

"Wow."

"Yeah. By the way, how do you feel about Meg?"

"She's kind of a bitch in my opinion," Marco said.

"Season eight episode seventeen. You're welcome." Krista said.

Ymir rolled her eyes. "Can we stop and go in already? I'm starving." She said, and then took out a roll of cash.

"Oh, uh, I already bought our tickets." I say, pulling out my wallet and showing her the small pieces of paper I had printed out earlier today.

"Well, then wait for us outside the gate, will you?" Ymir said, and got in line.

Ten minutes later, Ymir and Krista walked through the gates, and over to where Marco and I were standing. "So, what do you want to do first?" Krista asked us.

"Well, I don't know about you guys, but I'm starving!" Ymir said, and hurried to the corn dog stand a few yards away.

"I wasn't asking you!" Krista called at her retreating back, but rolled her eyes and smirked playfully. "Are you guys' hungry?"

"I kind of am," I admitted and Marco nodded.

"Well I think that most of the food booths are on this end, so let's eat here. How about we meet up by that cotton candy cart over there?" She asked.

"Sounds good to me." I said, and Krista turned and ran after Ymir.

"So, what do you want?" I asked Marco as we walked through the streets.

"Uh, a hotdog would be fine," he replied shyly.

"Okay, let's go find a hotdog vendor." We began to look around, until we found one.

"Two hotdogs please," I said to the man working there when we reached the vendor.

"Would you like anything on that?" He asked.

"Mustard." Marco said, right at the same time I said, "Ketchup."

The man grinned, and squirted ketchup on one hotdog and mustard on the other. "Anything you want to drink with that?"

"Pepsi," I said.

"Coke," Marco replied at the same time as I did.

He was still grinning as he handed us our drinks, then bid us a good day.

"So, you like Pepsi and ketchup?" Marco asked as we sat down on a bench.

"Yeah."

"Then we must battle to the death! Mustard and Coke will prevail!" He said in a dramatic voice, and I couldn't help but laugh.

It was quiet as we bit into our hotdogs, savoring the taste. A minute passed before I started the conversation again.

"So, how do you feel about rides?"

Marco shrugged. "What kind of rides? Like fast rides, high rides, or spinning rides?"

"Umm…all of them."

"I like them. Especially the fast ones," he said.

"Well, I don't really do spinning rides, but high rides and fast rides we can do."

"There you are!" A voice cried, and I jumped and looked to see Krista, a hamburger in one hand and a folded piece of paper in the other. "We didn't find you at the cotton candy place, so we looked for you. And we also found a map."

"Great. So any idea on where you guys want to go?" I asked politely.

"Well, I don't know about you, but we want to do some games." Ymir said, slinging an arm around Krista's shoulder.

"And rides," Marco added.

"Well, then we might as well start…"

**Three hours later**

"Goal!" Ymir cried triumphantly, jumping up and down and fisting the air.

The woman sighed, and looked at her. "Pick one off the top shelf," she said dully. It was our fourth win, and we could tell that she was getting tired, but I don't think that Krista was done yet.

"I want the…huge panda bear please." Ymir said, and when the woman gave it to her, she immediately turned around and gave it to Krista, who gave it a big hug and kissed Ymir's cheek in thanks.

"Now it's my turn." She grinned evilly, and walked up to the booth.

The game was simple: shoot the target with a little ball launcher. Problem was, the ball was about roughly the size of a ping pong ball, and bull's eye was like a little pinprick. But somehow Ymir had hit it four times, so Krista must be able to.

Marco and I took a healthy step back as Krista flexed her muscles, and then moved up to the ball launcher. She spread her feet apart slightly and I saw her back muscles tense as she grasped the controls, tilting the launcher upwards to the target. Then she slapped a dollar on the counter, and the woman sighed as she filled the ball launcher with several blue rubber balls.

Four shots later at the target, we had another bull's eye and a huge stuffed Pikachu for Marco (Ymir had already won two stuffed animals for herself, so she gave two to Krista and gave me a huge stuffed animal of a puppy).

We were starting to wind down. We knew we couldn't stay at the fair much longer: we all have work tomorrow, and we wanted to get home in time to get a good night's sleep. And pretty much everything we had wanted to do had been accomplished: we had been on many rides, won several games, and had even talked to Armin for a few minutes. He couldn't stay long, but I got to introduce Marco to him, and he immediately told me that I was lucky. Annie wasn't up to talking long, so it was only a few minutes of conversation before we were going in different directions again.

But I had promised Marco something. I had sworn that the last thing we would do before we left was go on the Ferris wheel.

"Hey," Marco said quietly, reminding me again.

I turned towards the girls. "Um, I kind of promised Marco we would go on the Ferris wheel before we go. Can you wait up for us?"

Ymir and Krista nodded, and a few minutes later we were in front of the huge attraction. The line was short, as it was late, so we got in line. Thirty seconds later we were climbing in a small little lit-up cart thing, and the door was shut behind us.

In the dim light, I could see Marco across from me. We were close, so close I could count his freckles. Could see every little fleck in his deep brown eyes, every little crease in his soft lips. At that, I sat back, trying to clear the suddenly charged air.

Right then the cart jolted forward, causing Marco to launch headfirst into me. He landed in his lap, and I could feel the heat of his face against my abdomen. Then he straightened, and I could see the redness in his cheeks as he avoided looking at me and instead outside the glass windows.

"Whoa!" He exclaimed, and I looked outside too. We could see every star, the glowing from the fair beneath us, the city in the distance. The night was clear, not a cloud in sight, exposing thousands of glowing sparks against the dark background. A crescent moon shed its hazy light across the earth, illuminating everything.

Suddenly I felt us stop, and I realized we were at the very top. Marco must've realized it as well, as a grin rose to his lips, and his eyes grew brighter.

Then we were jolted again, causing me to fall into Marco's lap this time. But instead of getting off, I turned and stared up at his eyes. They were huge, glowing orbs. His mouth was parted slightly, and I could practically hear his heart beating rapidly as I leaned forward and pressed my lips to mine.

We remained that way, until we were almost at the very bottom, where I blushed and finally climbed back onto my seat. Marco was red too, and lightly gasping for breath, but with one look we felt grins rise to our faces, and I couldn't help but feel bubbles of happiness expanding in my stomach.

When we got to the bottom, where Ymir and Krista were waiting for us, they took one look. That was all it took before they started grinning too, and sharing excited and knowing glances. They were happy for us.

I just hope my parents are happy too.

**Aww! So cute! Okay I don't know whether to do another date for the next chapter or introduce the parents. **

**Comment!**

**-Lilith**


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